You will have seen the news of the horrific attack in London Bridge. Our thoughts are with the victims, their families and with the emergency services who responded.

Following the dreadful events of last night, all national campaigning in the General Election will be suspended until this evening. Please see the statement by Jeremy Corbyn below.

Jeremy Corbyn, Leader of the Labour Party, said:

“We are all shocked and horrified by the brutal attacks in London. My thoughts are with the families and friends of those who have died and the many who have been injured. Today, we will all grieve for their loss.
“I would like to thank the police and emergency services for their bravery and professionalism in acting to save lives and deal with these appalling acts of terrorism, as well as NHS staff and members of the public who sought to protect others.

“The Labour party will be suspending national campaigning until this evening, after consultations with other parties, as a mark of respect for those who have died and suffered injury.
“Those who wish to harm our people, divide our communities and attack our democracy will not succeed. We will stand together to defend our common values of solidarity, humanity and justice, and will not allow terrorists to derail our democratic process.”

Ends

        -- Hospitals and commissioning groups face staff exodus as Conservatives fail to guarantee rights of EU citizens --

New figures show hospitals and clinical commissioning groups in Hackney face staff exodus under a Conservative government

Crucial hospitals and healthcare commissioning groups across London could lose up to a fifth of nurses, doctors, and NHS workers.

Meg Hillier, Labour General Election candidate for Hackney South and Shoreditch, said:

“These new figures reveal the human cost of the Tories’ relentless pursuit of a Hard Brexit.

“Not only are they failing to guarantee the rights and livelihoods of the many EU citizens who make such a huge positive contribution to our community here in Hackney – they are now also putting at risk everyone who relies on the NHS.”

She went on: “The Tories’ negotiation of Brexit has been inexcusably bad, and they are now playing politics with the safety and wellbeing of every single Londoner.

“Where the Tories have failed to guarantee the rights of EU citizens in the UK – to the detriment of our NHS – Labour has committed to immediately guaranteeing existing rights for EU nationals.

“Only Labour is clear-sighted about the human cost of a Hard Brexit, and we will fight for a deal that safeguards our NHS.”

New figures show a Tory government could mean over 20 London NHS trusts and health commissioners losing more than ten per cent of their nurses, doctors, healthcare assistants and other NHS workers – seriously affecting patient care and waiting times. In Hackney, the NHS would face losing more than 400 EU-born workers.

Londoners may face a ‘catastrophic NHS staffing crisis’ if the Conservative Party wins the election on June 8, as the Government has repeatedly failed to guarantee the right to remain for EU workers currently in the UK.

The new data also shows that six of the top ten hospitals and clinical commissioning groups with most EU staff are in London. 67 London hospital trusts and NHS clinical commissioning groups (CCGs), which are responsible for commissioning health services, rely on EU staff to deliver care for patients.

In one of the most extreme examples, London’s Royal Brompton Hospital could lose one in five of its staff if EU citizens are forced to leave the UK because of the Tories’ pursuit of an extreme ‘Hard Brexit’.

Not only will a Conservative government risk EU nationals’ right to stay in London, but their extreme ‘Hard Brexit’ approach is already deterring EU medical staff from coming to work in our hospitals.

13 per cent of London’s current nursing workforce is from the EU, and figures reported earlier this year show that the number of EU nationals registering as nurses in England has dropped by 92 per cent since the Brexit referendum. 2,700 EU nurses quit the health service altogether last year, adding to the strain which has seen waiting times escalate and patient care suffer.

Despite repeated calls from Labour and the Mayor of London for a cast-iron guarantee to protect the rights of the EU citizens already living in the capital, Theresa May’s Tory government has repeatedly failed to do so.

European NHS workers now face an uncertain future, with the Tories instead prioritising issues like repealing the ban on fox hunting, leaving the European Court of Human Rights, and placing additional charges on businesses which seek access to high-skilled talent from overseas.

In stark contrast, Labour’s manifesto promises to ‘immediately guarantee existing rights for all EU nationals living in Britain’ – rather than treating them ‘as bargaining chips’.

Further info: Ian Rathbone 07890 654 068

Note to editors:

EU staff figures are available from NHS Digital – NHS Digital Nationality Table Pack for Dispatches– and the relevant data is also pasted below:

Our hearts go out to the families and friends of those killed and injured in the terrible events of last night. We stand in solidarity with the people of Manchester.

As a mark of respect for the victims of the Manchester bombing and because of the seriousness of the security situation, General Election campaigning had been suspended. 

UPDATE: General Election campaigning will resume in Hackney on 25/05/2017.